SCHOOL PROFILE

King's School

Secondary Free schools URN 139409
Open
Pupils 8,834,192 Latest school census
Capacity 1,050 Published school capacity
Capacity used 88.1% Pupils as a share of capacity
Age range 11 – 19 Statutory age range
OFSTED

Latest inspection

19 May 2026
Latest published outcome Met
Renewed framework
Safeguarding Met
Inclusion Strong standard
Curriculum & teaching Strong standard
Achievement Strong standard
Attendance & behaviour Strong standard
Personal development Strong standard
Leadership & governance Strong standard
INSPECTION HISTORY

Previous Ofsted activity

22 March 2022
Graded inspection Good
Published 25 May 2022
SCHOOL DETAILS

About this school

School type Free schools
Phase Secondary
Gender Mixed
Religious character Church of England
Local authority Brighton and Hove
Trust RUSSELL EDUCATION TRUST
Census date 15 January 2026
PUPIL PROFILE

School community

Latest published pupil characteristics for 2025/26.

2025/26
Total pupils 925 925 full-time · 0 part-time
Female pupils 468 50.6% of pupils
Male pupils 457 49.4% of pupils

Free school meals

Pupils eligible for free school meals.

19.4%
5.4 pts below England
School 19.4%
Brighton and Hove 23.4%
South East 19.0%
England 24.8%

English as an additional language

Pupils whose first language is not English.

20.3%
0.0 pts in line with England
School 20.3%
Brighton and Hove 14.8%
South East 15.6%
England 20.3%

Young carers

Pupils recorded as young carers.

0.1%
0.9 pts below England
School 0.1%
Brighton and Hove 1.1%
South East 1.7%
England 1.0%

Ethnicity

Largest recorded pupil groups.

White British
63.2%
585
Any other White background
8.9%
82
Any other ethnic group
5.4%
50
Any other Mixed background
4.8%
44
Unclassified
3.5%
32
White and Asian
2.6%
24
Council, regional and national comparisons are pupil-weighted using published school census counts.
ADDITIONAL NEEDS

Special educational needs

Pupils receiving SEN support or with an education, health and care plan.

2025/26
Pupils with SEN 27.9% 258 of 925 pupils
7.1 pts above England England: 20.8%
School 27.9%
Brighton and Hove 25.6%
South East 21.1%
England 20.8%
SEN support 22.5% 208 pupils
England 14.8% 7.7 pts above
EHC plans 5.4% 50 pupils
England 6.0% 0.6 pts below
PRIMARY NEEDS

Most common identified needs

Pupils
Autistic spectrum disorder 96
Specific learning difficulty 66
Social, emotional & mental health 35
Speech, language & communication 21
Other difficulty or disability 17
Hearing impairment 7

SEN comparisons are pupil-weighted using published 2025/26 Department for Education school-level data. Primary needs combine pupils receiving SEN support and pupils with EHC plans.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE

Key stage 4 outcomes

Published Department for Education results for 2024/25.

2024/25
ATTAINMENT 8

Average attainment score

53.7 14.5 pts above England
School 53.7
Brighton and Hove 38.1
South East 38.5
England 39.2
English & maths grade 5+ 59.4% England 36.0% 23.4 pts above England
English & maths grade 4+ 80.6% England 51.4% 29.2 pts above England
EBacc entry 33.8% England 30.6% 3.2 pts above England
EBacc average point score 4.71 England 3.41
Progress 8 Not available for 2024/25

Latest published: 0.84 · 2023/24

Comparisons are averages of published school-level results for open schools. They are not pupil-weighted official local authority attainment rates.

ATTENDANCE & ABSENCE

Attendance profile

Published Department for Education absence data for 2024/25. Lower absence rates are generally better.

2024/25
ABSENCE RATE

Overall absence

6.72%

Percentage of possible sessions missed.

0.50 pts higher than England
School 6.72%
Brighton and Hove 7.09%
South East 6.30%
England 6.22%
ABSENCE RATE

Persistent absence

17.43%

Pupils missing 10% or more of sessions.

1.61 pts higher than England
School 17.43%
Brighton and Hove 18.77%
South East 15.75%
England 15.82%
ABSENCE RATE

Severe absence

2.28%

Pupils missing 50% or more of sessions.

0.47 pts higher than England
School 2.28%
Brighton and Hove 2.28%
South East 1.93%
England 1.80%
Council, regional and national comparisons are averages of published school-level percentages rather than pupil-weighted official absence rates.
HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

School context

Comparison with open secondary schools.

CAPACITY

Capacity utilisation

88.1% 4.2 pts below England
King's School
88.1%
Brighton and Hove
84.6%
South East
95.0%
England
92.3%
Benchmarks use open schools in the same phase. Capacity utilisation is calculated from published pupil and capacity figures.
Sources: Department for Education · Get Information about Schools · Ofsted monthly management information